Exciting London Book Fair 2015 news!

Nayu here! The 2015 yearly London Book Fair is on from tomorrow until Thursday. I'm  not going, but if you're going and are a writer you'll want to know this info which only came out this afternoon so is literally hot off the press! 

                

    PRESS RELEASE

HEAR FROM INDUSTRY EXPERTS AT THE LONDON BOOK FAIR!

Dedicated Author HQ theatre and seminar programme

for established and aspiring writers

News for release, Monday 13 April 2015:  Industry experts will be on hand this week at The London Book Fair (LBF) at Author HQ, with Kindle Direct Publishing, LBF’s dedicated theatre for established and aspiring writers. Launched as a response to increasing interest from the self-publishing community, a fantastic line up of speakers - publishers, writers and agents - will be taking part in three day programme of seminars designed to provide the knowledge, tools and insight writers need to make informed decisions about getting their work published - in a world where conventional and self-publishing opportunities offer an ever expanding number of routes to market.

Representatives from Little, Brown; HarperCollins; Headline; The Orion Publishing Group; Quercus; Pan Macmillan; The Creative Penn; The Alliance of Independent Authors; The Agency Group; Canelo Digital Publishing; The Society of Authors and The Literary Consultancy, AM Heath and David Higham Associates,  to name but a few, will be on hand to share their secrets and expertise.

Each day of the Fair you will be able to hear about the writing and publishing experiences of some bestselling Kindle Direct Publishing authors and learn how they did it.  Mel Sherratt, Stephanie Hudson and Keith Houghton will be joined by Mark Dawson on Tuesday; by CJ Lyons on Wednesday and by Rachel Abbott on Thursday.   Seminar topics for 2015 include:

·        Introduction to Publishing - a quick fire publishing industry overview, looking at the roles of a publisher and literary agent

·        Know Your Rights - Legal and contracts - advice on how to navigate the legal issues of an evolving industry, from intellectual property rights in traditional and digital media, to contract negotiation

·        What we talk about when we discuss writing and reading in the digital era - the influence that internet has on the reading and writing habits that are shaping the cultural face of the new millennium is undeniable. But how beneficial is this influence?

·        The Principles of Successful Book and Book Cover Design - how important is the design and cover to a book’s success?  Given the number of formats a book can be published in, what are the golden rules of design?   A guide from industry experts involved in all stages of the process.  Top tips on brand, what works - and some of the things to avoid

·        Genre Spotlights seminars - two sessions will focus on crime and thrillers and contemporary fiction - what are audiences reading, and what, if any, are the trends within the genres?  What is the next big thing - and can you really predict it?  

·        Publishers and agents - how they are discovering new talent - what are they looking for, and what is the best way to pitch your ideas?

·        European Song Contest winner Conchita Wurst will be discussing her autobiography Being Conchita, published in May in a non-fiction Genre Spotlight

·        Crowdfunding - experts will share their knowledge and expertise on how to run a successful crowdfunding campaign, getting started, creating strong pitch materials and campaign collateral, ways to grow and connect with your community, campaign management - and what to do when your campaign reaches its end

·        How to sell your book - is the tide beginning to turn when it comes to retailers selling titles by self-published authors?  What do booksellers need to know when deciding on what to stock? An insight into the retail decision-making process, the market as it is today, and the ever-evolving role of the bookseller

·        How I Made It – Living the Dream - CJ Lyons, Amanda Prowse and Helena Coggan share their different experiences of how they launched their writing careers and their success to date

Programmed by Kobo Writing Life, three seminars will look at What it takes to get readers to turn the page - how difficult is it to take readers down to the end of the story you have written? The craft of writing takes the stage will ask – is it true that there are only seven stories in fiction and that all others are based on them? If so, how can authors keep their work fresh and new?  The rise of author collectives – is widely regarded to be the new “golden path” in self-publishing. Besides being an exciting social experience, are those co-operatives really capable of making a difference to a writer’s success?

With social media giving authors the power and ability to connect directly with their readers in a way that is fundamentally changing the way they buy books, a seminar on Successful Social Media Strategies will look at ways authors can make the best of the opportunity.   A separate seminar will cover Effective PR & Marketing and national and trade journalists will look at how books figure in the media, what book reviewers are looking for and how the review process works in a seminar billed Journalists - what are they looking for?

Back for another year, The Write Stuff, a Dragon’s Den-style panel event, will see ten authors pitch their books to a panel of literary agents on Thursday afternoon in front of an audience in Author HQ, for the chance to win a follow up meeting with an agent.

Launched as a response to increasing interest from the self-publishing community, Author HQ is now one of the most popular features of the Fair – and there will be plenty on offer for established and aspiring writers. 

The London Book Fair (14-16 April) has moved to its new venue for 2015 - Olympia, West London.  All Author HQ events are free-to-attend with the purchase of a three-day LBF pass.  Seminars are on a first come, first served, basis. Please visit www.londonbookfair.co.uk for booking information.  For further information on the seminar line up, please visit www.londonbookfair.co.uk/authors.